Battery-plate.



PATENTED JUNE 21; 1904.

H. G. PORTER.

BATTERY PLATE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 14, 1902.

2, SHEETS-BHEET 1.

8.0 MODEL.

No. 763,322. I PATENTED JUNE 21, 1904.-

V H. G. PORTER.

BATTERY PLATE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 14, 1902. I no MODEL. 2 SHHETS-S'HEET 2.

THE NO RI; PEYERS CO FHOTQLIYND WASHINGTON D I:

UNITED STATES Patented June 21, 1904.

PATENT OEEicE,

HENRY C. PORTER, OF VVAUKEGAN, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO PORTER BATTERYCOMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

BATTERY-PLATE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 763,322, dated June 21,1904.

Application filed July 14, 1902.

To all whom if may concern.-

Be itknown that I, HENRY C. PORTER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Wankegan, in the county of Lake and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in One-PieceBattery-Plates, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates particularly to battery-plates used in secondary orstorage batteries.

The object of my invention is to provide a durable, compact,inexpensive, and simple plate. These and such other objects as mayappear are obtained by the device shown in the accompanying drawings, inwhich Figure 1 shows a side elevation of one of my improved plates witha portion of one side thereof broken away. Fig. 2 is a sectional view onthe line 2 2 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction indicated by the arrows.Fig. 3 is a plan view. Fig. 4 isa detail showing a fractional portion ofa complete plate. Fig. 5 is a sectional View on the line 5 5 of Fig. 4looking in the direction indicated by the arrows. Fig. 6 is aperspective view of a tablet of active material. Fig. 7 is a perspectiveview of a plate, showing a tablet being inserted in one of the pocketsof the plate. Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a completed plate.

Like letters of reference indicate the same parts in the several figuresof the drawings.

In preparing my plate I first cast the plate in the form of a casing A,having a terminal a and provided with a plurality of internallyarrangedribs B, which preferably extend longitudinally of the plate and parallelwith each other and which preferably are integral with both walls of thecasing, thereby dividing the easing into a plurality of pockets C. Incasting this casing in its preferred form it is altogether better tocast it so that it is closed on all sides except at one edge, which isleft open so as to leave each of the pockets C open at one end thereof.To facilitate the closing of this open edge of the plate after the samehas been properly filled with active material, I prefer providing thisedge with a slight depression or slot D, extending longitudinally SerialNo. 116,512. (No model.)

thereof, although this open edge of the casingmay be closed in anysuitable mannersuch, for instance, as by burning to this edge of theplate a strip of metal of the requisite dimensions. ends of the pocketsC may be left open, as the filling process under some conditions mightbe interfered with by the presence ofair within the closed ends of thepockets; but I do not consider such additional openings as at allessential. As very small openings will suifice for the escape ofimprisoned air, such air-escape openings need not necessarily be closedas a step in the completion of the plate; but whether or not suchadditional openings shall be closed is a matter depending wholly uponthe size thereof, as well, perhaps, as upon other conditions which mayarise in any given case, but which do not relate to the spirit of myinvention. Indeed, as usually constructed the space included between theopposite faces of the casing A is only about one-eighth of an inch wide,so that it is entirely practical and may under some conditions be deemedpreferable to leave either or both ends of the pocket C open, so thatthe active material will have a tendency to adhere closely within thepockets C and when solidified by a forming process will have little ifany tendency to leave the pockets C.

My improved plate is prepared as follows: Starting with the casing A,provided with the pockets C, freely open at one end thereof and .with orwithout openings at the opposite ends thereof, I fill the pockets C withsuitable active material, preferably in a paste-like condition, andthen, supporting the plate in any suitable manner, close the freely-openends of the pockets C in any suitable manner. In practice I preferclosing the freely-open ends of the pockets C by the use of hydrogenburner and a small stick of lead or other suitable fusible material,which is melted by the hydrogen-burner and fills the slight groove orslot D across the open ends of the pockets C. I next perforate the sidesof the casing A in any suitable manner, but preferably by running thesame through a press provided with So, also, if desired, the oppositepunching devices so arranged as to punch holes E through the metal ofthe sides of the easing into the active material F contained in thepockets C, thereby still further compressing the already-closely packedactive material in these pockets and forming tangs a, which are forcedinto and engage this active material. The plate is next subjected to anyfamiliar forming process, thereby transforming the active material intoasolid compound, which is solidified around the tangs c and adheresclosely thereto.

It will thus be seen that I produce a onepiece battery-plate soconstructed that there is practically no possibility of any loss ofactive material therefrom and in which the loss of contact between themetal of the plate and the active material because of contraction andexpansion within the plate is reduced to a minimum and in which theactive material is so confined and supported that I am enabled todispense with in the neighborhood of three-quarters of the number ofsupporting-ribs as used in the ordinary batterygrid, thereby not onlydiminishing the cost of the plate, but also reducing the weight thereof,for although the active material is surrounded by walls of lead or leadalloy such walls are so integrally connected with each other and are soattached to the active material by virtue of the tangs, which projecttherefrom and are embedded in the active material which was subsequentlysolidified around them, that I am enabled to use a plate having verythin walls, while at the same time obtaining a plate of sufiicientstrength and rigidity for service condition.

Of course my invention is not confined to the precise manner ofconstruction shown, either as to the arrangement of the ribs, the mannerof closing the open end of the plate, or as to other such details,which, as amatter of shop convenience, will naturally be varied fromtime to time to meet varying conditions and requirements. Under someconditions it may be found convenient to mold the active material intotablets, such as the tablet F, (shown in Fig. 6 of the drawings) ofsuchform and dimension as to lit readily but snugly within thepockets C.This will facilitate charging the pockets with active material, and, ifdesired,

the tablets may then be softened by immersing the plate in a suitablefluid before or during the perforating process. Under these conditionsthe perforating process will have a tendency to force the softeningtablets snugly into all corners of the pockets C, so as to have intimatecontact with the metal of which the casing and ribs are formed.

1 claim 1. A battery plate comprising a casing closed on all sidesexcept on one edge, and being formed with depressions at said open edge,an active material arranged in said plate, and means adapted tocooperate with said depressions to close said plate.

2. Abattery-plate comprisinga easing having one of its edges open,partitions arranged in said. casing and having one of their endsterminating at the open edge of the casing, the ends of the upper andlower walls at said open edge of said casing, and the adjacent ends ofthe partitions being depressed, a filling of active material arrangedbetween said par titions, and means adapted to cooperate with saiddepressions to close said plate.

3. A battery plate comprising a casing closed on all sides except at oneedge, a series of integral partitions arranged in the said casing, afilling of active material arranged between the said partitions, andmeans independent of the casing proper for closing the open edge of thesaid casing.

4. The combination with the casing formed with a series of pockets oneend of which is open, the walls of said casing at the open ends of saidpockets being formed with depressions, of a filling of active material,and means adapted to cooperate with said depressions to close saidplate.

5. The combination with the casing having one of its sides open,partitions arranged in the said casing, at right angles to the said openside, one end of the upper and lower walls and partitions of the saidcasing being formed with depressed portions, and a lilling of activematerial arranged between the said partitions.

HENRY C. PORTER,

Witnesses:

J. A. RAYMOND, O. R. BARNETT.

